Submarine base nears completion, Royal Thai Navy now 'needs' a fleet

The Royal Thai Navy plans to complete the construction of a submarine squadron headquarters and training centre in March next year, despite not having any submarines in its fleet.

Construction on the project began last year at Chon Buri's Sattahip Naval Base. The navy is eyeing the purchase of at least three submarines as part of its next 10-year procurement plan.

Submarine squadron chief Panu Punyavirocha said the new headquarters will cost 540 million baht. About 200 million baht of that is being spent on the Submarine Command Team Trainer, which will include a crew training stimulator.

Former navy chief Adm Kamthorn Pumhiran ordered the submarine squadron to be formed in April 2011 in anticipation of the government's green light to purchase four used German submarines worth 7 billion baht.

The plan's cost-effectiveness and transparency were questioned, however, and in the end the government failed to approve the procurement in time for the purchase deadline set by Germany.

"Submarines are of strategic importance to Thailand," Rear Adm Panu said Saturday.

He insisted submarines are unique compared to other armaments in terms of their strategic capabilities. If territorial disputes in the South China Sea escalate, sea transport in the Gulf of Thailand could be shut down with severe economic ramifications, Rear Adm Panu said.

"The navy must maintain its defensive capabilities to ensure the free movement of vessels in and out of the Gulf of Thailand under all circumstances. This is a matter of sovereignty and territorial integrity," the squadron chief said.

Submarines would also act as a deterrent to hostile parties seeking to encroach into Thailand's maritime territory, he said.

Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam have all commissioned submarine fleets and plan to procure more, Rear Adm Panu said, adding that there are now 19 submarines operating in neighbouring waters.

"Submarines are the invisible force of deterrence. They constitute a covert naval strength as they are nowhere to be seen but are present everywhere," he said.

Navy chief Narong Pipatanasai echoed the need for submarines.

"Although we don't have tens of billions of baht to spend on submarines, the navy must be prepared for when we will have them in the near future," the navy chief said, referring to the new training centre.

A Defence Ministry source said Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, who doubles as defence minister, had instructed Supreme Commander Thanasak Patimaprakorn to devise a 10-year development plan for the armed forces.

The plan will sound out what armaments each branch of the military needs or wants.

Submarines will be included in the navy's 10-year plan, the source said.

Submarines will be important for maritime security when the Dawei deep sea port opens in Myanmar, with shipping lanes around the western coast expected to be bustling, the source added.

Rear Adm Panu said the navy needs at least three submarines, ranging in size from 500- to 3,000-tonne displacement. He dismissed concerns the Gulf of Thailand may be too shallow for submarines to operate.

He said several submarines from other countries had conducted drills in the Gulf.

"Those foreign navies probably know more than we do about the underwater terrain in the Gulf of Thailand," he said.

The navy has sent 18 officers for a 32-week submarine training course in Germany, and another 10 for a similar eight-week course in South Korea.

The navy plans to send more officers to attend exercises and seminars abroad to boost their knowledge of submarines, Rear Adm Panu said.

The new submarine training school will produce personnel with the skills to operate a future submarine fleet, he added.

Thailand - Terrorists Demand Immunity From Pursuit

The peace talks with the southern separatists are stalled and the three terrorist groups that oppose the talks have increased their violence in protest. The negotiations are not going anywhere because the Islamic radicals have apparently gained control of the negotiators and forced them to ask for things the government will not provide (diplomatic immunity for the negotiators and a halt to police and army efforts to find and arrest known terrorists). Making peace is very popular among the Moslem civilians in the south favor a negotiated settlement but the smuggling gangs and Islamic radicals do not. Thus since the peace talks began in late March, the violence in the south has doubled. Most of the additional attacks are against security personnel and government officials. Attacks on civilians (most of whom support the talks) have declined by half and there have been no attacks on teachers (which is unpopular with most civilians). The groups carrying out these attacks oppose real negotiations because they oppose anything less than a separate Moslem state in the south. Others want to be sure that the smuggling gangs (which have supported some of the terror groups) are not interfered with. The most the government will grant is more autonomy and economic aid. A decade of violence down there has left nearly 6,000 dead and driven many Buddhists from their homes in the three majority Moslem provinces in the far south. The government believes the negotiators have been threatened by the most extreme terrorists and are no longer able to deliver any kind of deal. This was always a possibility and unless the Moslem population down south can deal with their own radicals the government will be forced to keep chasing down the terrorists, a process that could go on for years.

 

The Islamic terrorists and criminal gangs have gone to war against the growing number of security cameras installed in the south. Several dozen have been destroyed in the last few weeks. This has prompted security companies to employ vandal-proof installation techniques that make the cameras more difficult to destroy and often capture video of those carrying out the attacks (by having visible cameras watched by hidden ones). 

 

June 29, 2013: In the south a roadside bomb killed eight soldiers. 

 

June 25, 2013: The southern rebels offered a Ramadan (the Moslem holy month that is July 8-August 7 this year) truce. The rebels promised to reduce their attacks if the soldiers remained at their bases and police patrols were curbed. The government refused as this would enable the smugglers to operate with little risk at all and allow terrorists to move about and recruit freely. 

 

June 21, 2013: European ambassadors warned Thailand that if police and government corruption were not addressed on the southern resort island of Phuket, the Europeans countries supplying most of the 4.8 million tourists to Phuket each year would warn their citizens to go elsewhere. Police and officials on Phuket have become increasingly corrupt and tolerant of criminal behavior on Phuket. 

This has led to a growing number of tourist complaints. The tourism industry accounts for five percent of GDP, employing two million people, or seven percent of the workforce. Phuket is a major destination for tourists. 

 

June 18, 2013: In the south a policeman and a solider were killed in two separate terrorist attacks. 

 

June 15, 2013: In the south a police raid (because of a tip) on a terrorist hideout resulted in a gun battle that left one terrorist dead and another (who was wanted for killing six civilians) arrested.

Navy needs B13bn for new frigate

The Royal Thai Navy will ask the cabinet to approve a budget of 13 billion baht for a new frigate to be built by a South Korean shipyard.

Navy chief Adm Surasak Rounroengrom said the Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters is scrutinising the budget proposal and later will forward it to the Ministry of Defence. Once approved, it will be submitted to the cabinet for consideration, he said. 

A navy source said the navy had set up several sub-committees to coordinate with the Korea-based shipbuilding and offshore contractor. 

A navy selection committee last month chose Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering to build the new frigate, a navy source said.

The company was one of two South Korean firms in the final round of bidding, organised by the navy panel.

Three other three foreign firms were eliminated in the previous rounds - from Spain, Italy and China.

The source said the high-capability frigate to be built by Daewoo would be based on the company’s type DX II frigate, which has a displacement of 5,000 tonnes, with modifications to meet the Thai navy’s special requirements.

The new navy ship will have a displacement of between 3,000 and 4,000 tonnes.   

Navy chief of staff Chakchai Phucharoenyot, who chaired the selection committee, earlier told the media the navy also asked the company to install a Combat Management System (CMS) which can be allied to the systems already installed in the frigates HTMS Naresuan and HTMS Taksin.

The new frigate, which would be the first South Korean-built naval vessel in the Thai fleet, is expected to be ready for commissioning in two years, Adm Chakchai said.

Thailand - Safe Haven Turns Into A Trap

Moslem terrorists in the south continue demanding an independent state for the three mainly Moslem provinces. Government peace negotiators refuse to grant anything more than additional autonomy. The terrorists are also demanding the release of over a hundred people arrested, but not yet tried on charges of terrorism, in order to help move the peace talks along. That demand has also been turned down, not least because many of those awaiting trial are charged with murder.

 

The government is in a position of strength since of decade of Islamic terrorism has not done much more than hurt the Moslems in the three southernmost provinces and gotten over 5,000 people killed. Popular support for this terrorism movement is declining and the government is trying to persuade the radicals to take what they can and make peace. Even with that there will not be complete peace as there are still many criminal gangs (mainly drugs and smuggling) down there that generate murders in the normal course of doing business. 

 

May 4, 2013: In the Moslem south two civilians were shot dead by Islamic terrorists. 

 

May 3, 2013: The government extradited an Algerian hacker (Hamza Bendelladj) to the United States, where he is wanted for bank fraud via the Internet dating back to 2009. Bendelladj was arrested at a Thai airport four months ago at the request of the United States and since then has been trying to avoid extradition and trial. Foreign criminals used to regard Thailand as a safe haven because, until recently, it was possible to avoid detection and extradition easily. But better technology and policing, along with less corruption in the courts, has made Thailand less welcoming for criminals on the run. 

 

May 2, 2013: In the south two bombs went off in commercial districts but no one was injured. 

 

April 30, 2013:  Peace talks with southern separatist and Islamic radical groups resumed in Malaysia.

South Korea to build Thai navy frigate

The Royal Thai Navy has chosen a South Korean naval ship manufacturer to build a new frigate that will cost about 13 billion baht.

An RTN selection committee announced on Friday it had chosen Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering to manufacture the frigate, a navy source said.

The company was one of the last two South Korean firms to enter the final round of the bid organised by the RTN panel.

The other three foreign firms ousted from the previous rounds were from Spain, Italy and China.

RTN chief of staff Chakchai Phucharoenyot, who chaired the panel, said Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering was selected because it had proposed specifications for the frigate that were in line with the navy's demands.

The navy also asked the company to manufacture a Combat Management System (CMS) which can be allied to the systems installed in the frigates HTMS Naresuan and HTMS Taksin, he said.

The frigate, which will be the first South Korean-manufactured navy ship in Thailand, is expected to be commissioned in two years' time, Adm Chakchai said.

The new frigate will have a displacement of between 3,000 and 4,000 tonnes.

The cabinet earlier approved the RTN's procurement of two frigates with a budget of 30 billion baht. The frigates will be considered for manufacturing one by one.

According to the navy source, the RTN preferred European frigates but they were too expensive.

Meanwhile, a Defence Ministry source revealed that Defence Minister Sukumpol Suwanatat will lead military top brass on a visit to Russia between Tuesday and next Monday to bolster military ties.

Thai delegates will inspect the armaments industry in Russia, the source said.

Arms race explodes as neighbours try to counter China

An arms-buying spree across south-east Asia will be the elephant in the room when almost 20 world leaders meet in the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh, on Tuesday.

Defence spending across the region increased 13.5 per cent to $US25.4 billion ($24.5 billion) last year and was expected to rise to $US40 billion by 2016, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute said.

Flush with economic success and wary of China's military expansion, countries are acquiring sophisticated sea- and air-based arsenals that include dozens of submarines that can operate in secret.

The institute said Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia had increased defence budgets by 66 per cent to 82 per cent from 2002 to last year.

 Indonesia was buying submarines from South Korea and coastal radar systems from China and the US, Vietnam was getting submarines and combat jets from Russia and had acquired Israeli ballistic missiles, defence analysts said.

Vietnam's defence budget for this year is $US3.1 billion, a rise of 35 per cent over last year. The Philippines has a huge wish-list of equipment it wants from the US and is also approaching Japan, South Korea, France and Britain for defence acquisitions.

Singapore, already the fifth-largest weapons importing nation, looked like keeping its title as the region's biggest spender, allocating $US9.7 billion this year on defence, 24 per cent of its national budget. The city-state's purchases included combat jets from the US and submarines from Sweden.

Thailand was planning to buy submarines and warplanes from Sweden that would eventually be fitted with anti-ship missiles, while arms deliveries to Malaysia jumped eightfold over the five years to 2009.

For decades, much of south-east Asia spent little on weapons except guns and tanks to respond to internal threats. But they are now building their defence capabilities amid tensions over territorial claims in the South China Sea and other squabbles that underscore the role of the East Asia Summit.

Leaders attending include the US President, Barack Obama, the Chinese Premier, Wen Jiabao, and the Australian Prime Minister, Julia Gillard.

Defence officials estimated 86 submarines would be added to regional fleets by 2020, 30 of which would belong to China, which already had the most.

Some Chinese nuclear submarines were expected to carry 12 sea-launched ballistic missiles and could eventually be equipped with multiple warheads.

A south-east Asia analyst from the Australian Defence Force Academy at the University of NSW, Carl Thayer, said the ''deployment of nuclear submarines, including ballistic missile submarines, will introduce a new geostrategic dimension to the regional balance of power''.

Professor Thayer said Chinese nuclear submarine deployments would attract continuing attention from the US Navy. He warned the arms buying spree could have a destabilising impact on regional security.

In a paper delivered in Vietnam at the weekend, Professor Thayer says ''south-east Asia is ripe for rivalry - but not armed conflict - due to the strategic mistrust between a rising and increasingly militarily powerful China and a US committed to maintaining the present balance of power''.

Senior US officials said Mr Obama's trip to Cambodia, the first by a US president, would reinforce the ''pivot'' of US security forces to Asia and the Pacific. The strategy is seen as a counterweight to China, which is aggressively asserting its claim to almost all the South China Sea. Parts of the area are also claimed by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam.

In his paper, Professor Thayer says the ''most disturbing'' trend in defence spending is China's growing reliance on citizen fishing fleets and paramilitary forces gathering in a disputed area to assert Chinese jurisdiction.

 

Thailand - Islamic Terrorists Losing Their Base

A surge in terror attacks earlier this month, apparently carried out by as few as four men, may have been in response to the growing failure of the terrorist effort to coerce businesses to stay closed on Fridays. Some 90 percent did on the 5th, the first day of the terrorist effort to enforce this demand. But a week later only 70 percent closed and week by week more stores remained open on Fridays. The terrorists were not able to launch more attacks, or realized that public opinion, especially among Moslems, was against them in this endeavor. The government put a lot more soldiers and police in the markets and offered some financial incentives for merchants who opened on Friday. Overall, the terrorist violence is down, and when it does occur it tends to be in brief bursts of intense violence.

After a spike in attacks against schools and teachers last month, such activity sharply declined. The Islamic terror groups face a growing problem from the Moslem population they say they are fighting for. The Thai Moslems don’t want the secular schools closed, the shops shut on Fridays, and their Buddhist neighbors driven away. Eight years of terrorism has produced no benefits for the southern Moslems and, although more autonomy is still a popular cause, the Islamic terrorists are now seen as more of a problem than a solution. While the number of Islamic terrorists and supporters may be declining, there is still a hard core who are determined to keep up the violence until they are killed. That could take years.

October 12, 2012: In the south two separate attacks against Buddhists left two dead and one wounded.

October 10, 2012: In the last two days there was a burst of Islamic terrorism, which left twelve dead in five attacks. Most of the dead were Buddhists.

October 5, 2012: In the south many shops heeded threats from Islamic terrorists and stayed closed on Friday (the Moslem day of prayer). Merchants who stayed opened were threatened with attack, but there were no attacks against those stores that did open. Many shoppers stayed home, just in case.

No submarines for Thailand’s Navy, but maybe frigates instead?

A big procurement project of 2 frigate ships for 30bn Baht ($977m) has drawn criticism against the Royal Thai Army and has also raised the question of its necessity and its usefulness amidst the exorbitant price, considering the aftermath of the failed procurement of 6 decommissioned submarines from Germany for 7.6bn Baht ($250m), which was the highest priority of the Royal Thai Navy until it was eventually shelved. When the Royal Thai Navy ordered the HTMS Chakri Naruebet from Spain in 1992, the country’s only aircraft carrier planned as the Navy’s fleet command center, the price then was only 7.1bn Baht ($231m).

On September 18, 2012 the cabinet of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has approved the budget to buy frigates weighing 2,000 to 3,500 tons for 30bn Baht, after it was submitted by “Big Oh” - Air Chief Marshal Sukumpol Suwanatat, Defense Minister. The Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Thai Navy, Adm Surasak Rounroengrom (“Big Roun”) has assigned a fellow Class 13 graduate from the same army preparatory school, “Big Jieb” Adm Jakchai Poocharoenyos (Royal Thai Navy Chief-of-Staff) to head the project.

In the planned time frame, the navy wanted to have the approval for the frigates before the end of the fiscal year 2012 [September 30, 2012] in order to regain leverage over the internal balance of power after the failed submarines procurement and also to replace the soon-to-be-decomissioned frigate HTMS Phutthayotfa Chulalok.

The procurement of the frigates will supposedly take place in two phases: in the first, one frigate for 15bn Baht ($488m) during the fiscal years of 2012-2016 and during the second phase, another one for 15bn Baht during the fiscal years of 2014-2018. Also, the currently active frigate HTMS Naresuan is being upgraded in three phases, with budget commitments during the fiscal years of 2011-2014, 2012-2014 and 2013-2015. Currently, the Thai navy has two frigate fleets with 11 and 6 ships each.

The procurement committee has decided that the new frigates would be from Germany, since they are known for their well-built, high quality ships for a good value. But the navy would have to push for German frigates even more when submitting the request to the Ministry of Defense. The first hurdle there, “Big Tuey” Adm Chaiwat Bukkaratna, Adviser to the Minister of Defense and overseeing this very procurement, will approve it.

But there are also rumors that the “Big Boss” [possibly the Defense Minister?] wants to have frigate from China instead, which worries the navy officers in charge, since they fear the Chinese ships would be of bad quality and corrode within a few years. The HTMS Naresuan and the HTMS Taksin were procured from China and then commissioned in 1995, but are now in process of being repaired after growing corrosion and upgraded for total budget of 7bn Baht ($228m).

This coincides with rumors that the “Big Boss” [most likely Defense Minister Sukhumpol] has ordered the navy to change the procurement of submarines into the procurement of frigates instead. If they would have insisted to buy a new submarine, the price would have been about 15bn Baht ($488m), same as a frigate ship. But that would still have proven problematic and it could have ended in the same fate like the German second-hand submarines.

This wouldn’t have boded well with Defense Minister Sukumpol Suwanatat, who decided to stop the procurement process for the six decommissioned Type U-206 A submarines from Germany worth 7.6bn Baht ($250m) in total by not submitting the proposal to the cabinet for approval. Apart from letting the bidding deadline pass and other “technical problems”, Sukhumpol has ordered Adm Surasak Rounroengrom to look into other types of submarines and prepare the procurements of new submarines instead.

However in that case, he would have been accused to have deliberately scrapped the procurement process in order to purchase new submarines from Korea or China. In order to avoid this problem, Sukhumpol thus has altered to procurement to the two frigates instead.

A high-ranking navy source told SW:

    “Since the navy has been given a budget of 30bn Baht, we could go ahead and buy two new submarines. However, the higher-ups in the Ministry of Defense have stopped the submarine procurements and have changed the procurement to two frigates, [...] because if we would have searched for new submarines, we would have been criticized why we have stopped bidding for the German second-hand submarines and have been accused of ‘hidden benefits’. If the navy’s necessity for frigates is real, why has this been kept secret for so long with only a few high-ranking officers in the know?“

This coincides with the state visit of Sukhumpol and his advisers to Ukraine in October 9-15, 2012, also including a visit to Austria to build the relationship between both countries’ armed forces.

The trip to Ukraine also includes a factory tour of the T-84 OPLOT tanks, of which the Abhisit administration had approved the procurement of 54 tanks worth 7bn Baht ($228m) in order to strengthen the armed forces. The tanks are excepted delivered in 2013.

Sources - By Saksith Saiyasombut & Siam Voices

Army in new bid to get its airship flying

The army has agreed to pay 50 million baht more to an American airship producer to make its 350-million-baht airship fly for the first time since its procurement.

An army source said the army signed a contract with Aria International Inc on Sept 20 to make the surveillance airship stay up in the air.

The company was originally hired to provide the airship, which has not flown since its arrival in the country.

Army chief Gen Prayuth Chan-ocha ordered the contract because he does not want the airship to rest in its hangar in Pattani province any longer.

The contractor is confident it can make the airship fly by November.

The airship has been unable to fly since its delivery about two years ago. The army formally accepted the airship in July last year. Since then it has had to pay for its maintenance.

The army has paid 200,000-300,000 baht a month to refill the airship with helium, to help the airship keep its shape and avoid leaks. The army has paid about 25 million baht altogether for refills in the past year.

The airship was ordered during the tenure of former army chief Anupong Paochinda who hoped it would help deter threats in the three southern border provinces. However, it was criticised for being unsuitable for security missions in the far South, as it could be shot down with ease.

Poor storage caused multiple leaks, and the supplier repaired it once. The cameras of the airship and their video streaming system are also out of order.